Static vs Non-Static Members

Short Answer:
Static members belong to the class, while non-static members belong to the object (instance).

Detailed Explanation:
Static members are shared across all objects of a class and are loaded when the class is loaded. Non-static members are created separately for each object and require an instance to access them.

Key Differences

Example

class Student {

    static String college = "ABC College";   // Static variable
    String name;                             // Non-static variable

    static void showCollege() {              // Static method
        System.out.println(college);
    }

    void showName() {                        // Non-static method
        System.out.println(name);
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Student s1 = new Student();
        s1.name = "Aftab";

        // Accessing static
        Student.showCollege();

        // Accessing non-static
        s1.showName();
    }
}

Important Interview Points

• Static members are stored in the method area (class area).
• Non-static members are stored in heap memory.
• Static methods cannot use this or super.
• The main() method is static because JVM calls it without creating an object.